


Dancing in the Dark

by Pawprinter



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, F/M, Falling In Love, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Love Confessions, Mutual Pining, Pining Echo, Power Outage, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Valentine's Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-14
Updated: 2019-02-14
Packaged: 2019-10-28 00:38:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,724
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17777249
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pawprinter/pseuds/Pawprinter
Summary: Echo doesn't expect to spend Valentine's Day with Bellamy with only a single candle and a battery-powered radio. When a bad winter storm causes a power outage, she is doingexactlythat.[Written for my wonderful friend, raven-reyes-of-sunshine, for A Very Becho Valentine Gift Exchange!]





	Dancing in the Dark

**Author's Note:**

  * For [not_a_total_basket_case](https://archiveofourown.org/users/not_a_total_basket_case/gifts).



> This fanfiction is written for my wonderful friend Elyse ([raven-reyes-of-sunshine](http://raven-reyes-of-sunshine.tumblr.com/) on Tumblr). Thank you for always encouraging me and for being a delight to talk to. There are thousands of words that would have never been written if it wasn’t for you and our chats. 
> 
> This fic was written for the A Very Becho Valentine Gift Exchange hosted on Tumblr!
> 
> The title of this fic is based off the song Perfect by Ed Sheeran.
> 
> I hope you enjoy.

Echo balanced the cardboard box on her hip as she fished around her pocket for her key to Bellamy’s apartment. As she opened the door, she couldn’t help but snort.

_Of course he would be baking._

The smell of cookie dough hit her as soon as the door was pushed open. He promised her yesterday that he would bake her something if she brought over her radio and a few candles, but she thought he was kidding.  _She should’ve known better_. Bellamy always kept his word.

“Hey!” Bellamy’s voice drifted in from the kitchen. Echo kicked the door shut behind her and dropped the box at her feet. “You made it! I was worried.”

“I live two floors down,” she responded, her tone teasing. “It’s not like I could get lost.”

He appeared from the kitchen. Echo’s eyes drifted over him, noting a dash of flour across his black shirt. She quickly adverted her eyes as soon as she realized she was staring at him. She really didn’t want to be caught gawking.  _They were only friends_. She really needed to pull it together.

“It’s a snow storm,” he commented, his tone losing the teasing element. “One of the worst I’ve seen. Of course I worry.”

Echo was touched by his words. Bellamy always managed to make her heart warm and her breathing hitch.

She knew it was a problem. She just couldn’t bring herself to care.

“You’re new here,” she commented, moving further into his apartment. “This isn’t the worst winter I’ve seen.”

She grew up here her whole life, while Bellamy only moved here earlier that year. She was used to winters where temperatures would dip below -40°C and the snow would be up to her knees. On the other hand, Bellamy wasn’t. He moved to Polaris from Arkadia – a city along the cost. While he experienced his fair share of winters, the weather was usually milder where he was from.

Polaris wasn’t as forgiving. She sometimes didn’t understand how it could get so cold and someone would survive.

Last year, she stood on the street and blew bubbles in the middle of winter. They froze before they touched the ground. And that was near the  _end_  of winter, when the weather was mild.

That same year, during a particularly nasty day, her car wouldn’t start because she forgot to plug it in overnight.

Two years ago, there was so much snow that her school day was actually cancelled. That was saying something, considering she never had a snow day before in her life.

Now, this year – today, actually – the winds were supposed to pick up and the snow was supposed to come down.  _Hard_.

Bellamy was in denial about the whole thing. This was his first winter at Polaris and he expected it to be what he always experienced.

Echo kept warning him; don’t plan to go out on the 14th — it’ll be too cold to do anything. She knew he didn’t have any plans for Valentine’s Day anyways – they had plans to spend this day together for weeks already.

Considering the high winds and the amount of snow coming down, she doubted power would be on for much longer. Still, he didn’t believe her. She might have been stubborn, but so was he, in his own way.

“The cookies are just in the oven,” Bellamy said, moving back into the kitchen. Echo trailed in after him. “You like chocolate chip, right?”

“Love them.”

“Great.” He sent her a smile that made her heart race. She tried to ignore it.

Instead, she focused on the mess around his kitchen.  _He was not an efficient baker_. There must’ve been a dozen bowls and even more spoons scattered around the room.

“You’re a mess,” she commented, the smile giving away her amusement. “You shouldn’t have baked.”

“I told you I would.”

“And I told you not to worry about it.” She gathered a few spoons from the counter and placed them in the sink.

“It wasn’t a problem,” he said, joining her in moving dirty dishes to the sink.

She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. “I’m worried the power will go out and then all your hard work will be for nothing.”

He snorted. “The power isn’t going to go out. You can quote me on that.”

She nudged him with her elbow. “You seem to know a whole lot for just having moved here.” Before he could respond, she was talking again. “You can quote me on  _this_. The power will go out and your cookies will be ruined.”

“Oh, you wanna bet?”

Echo turned to face him, curiosity filling her. She hasn’t heard him this playful before. It made a thrill go through her.  _She liked him like this._

“Yeah. Sure. I’ll take a bet.” She turned on the sink, letting water run over the batter covered dishes. “What’s the prize?”

He stepped beside her, spilling some soap into the warm water. “I guess you’ll have to win to find out.” Her heart leapt at that.

After only a moment of silence, she spoke again, trying to keep her voice even. “I hope you win,” she commented. “That means that this storm isn’t going to be as bad as everyone thinks it is.” She cast a side glance at him. “Everyone except for you, apparently.”

“Admit it, you love my optimism.” She merely rolled her eyes in response. They easily fell into a pattern of washing and drying the dishes.

After months of constantly bumping into each other in the laundry room, she was glad they were friends. When he first moved there, they would always race each other for the washing machines. They always finished their shifts at work at the same time, which meant they always attempted to do their laundry at the same time.

Echo wasn’t sure when that race for the washing machine turned into one of her favourite parts of her day. She blamed it on the fact that it was because Bellamy was really attractive and was actually  _really_  funny. She couldn’t pin the exact moment the races to get their clothes in the machine turned into racing to the laundry room so they could see each other, but it happened.

At first, they were hostile because  _this was her damn laundry time, new guy,_ but when she realized how fun it was to hang out with him, she was more okay with having to wait for the machines with him.

She loved those first few months of talking to Bellamy. He was funny in a nerdy way, and she loved it. He was kind too – so kind. She doubted there was anyone in her life that was more compassionate and caring than Bellamy Blake.

She learned about how much he cared for his friends and how much he cared for his sister. She never had a close friend group – not really, anyways. She spent all of her time either studying or training at the gym. Neither of those activities were ones that required a lot of talking to others.

Another thing she never had was a family. That was one thing she loved hearing him talk about – his love for his mother and his sister. She doubted she would ever understand familial love like that, but it was nice to dream about with Bellamy.

What made her fall in love for him, though, was the fact that he wasn’t afraid to be himself, no matter how nerdy and passionate that was. _And she loved how nerdy and passionate he was._ She didn’t think there was someone out there that knew more about Greek mythology than he did. Considering she knew next to nothing, it was nice to talk to him about it. After weeks of chatting and weeks after that spent getting to know each other, he turned to telling her stories about Greek mythology and Greek heroes.

The way he was dedicated to people he cared about made her heart swell, but hearing him talk about something he was passionate about – now that was captivating.

He always made time to come talk to her, even if he didn’t have laundry to do that day. He asked about her day and actually listened – now  _that_  was something she hadn’t found in a person in a long time. People were always so eager to ask that question, but they were never invested in the answer.

At least, until Bellamy Blake.  _He cared._

What started as races for the washing machine transitioned to conversations as their clothes dried. From that, something more grew. One day, she was really invested in a myth he was telling her, so he invited her to his apartment.

It was a simple step, but it was one that lead to so much more.

They had become friends after that. They weren’t confined to the laundry room anymore, they were  _out there_.

 _That was the tipping point for Echo_.

It was easy to be ‘ _friends’_ with a person inside a certain space, just how she had certain ‘friends’ at school and ‘friends’ at work and ‘friends’ at the gym (it’s not that she didn’t like them – but they  _only_ ever talked or hung out at specific locations. It just didn’t feel like it should classify as a real friendship). Once they started hanging out other than in the laundry room, she felt like they were  _actually_  friends.

Then, he started inviting her out with his friends. She brought him to her gym a few times. He bought her a book on the basics of Greek mythology. (She stayed up until the sun was peaking past the trees reading that night.)

It was amazing and quite confusing because she wasn’t sure when it all happened, but they were friends. It happened both all at once and so slowly that she didn’t even realize it.

 _Just like her feelings towards him._ Her-most-definitely-not-only-friend-feelings.

She didn’t know when those developed either, but they were there. Her heart would race when she was with him, and her stomach would come alive with butterflies every time he smiled. He made her happy and she loved spending time with him. Having conversations with him about anything and everything was one of the best parts of her day.

She was so far gone that it really should’ve terrified her.  _But it didn’t._ That was the thing with Bellamy – he made her feel safe.

Bellamy nudged her elbow with his, breaking her from her thoughts. “You okay?”

That was another one of his skills that she loved. He could read her like an open book – that was something not many people could do. She was usually closed off and reserved around people she didn’t know too well, yet she found herself wearing her heart on her sleeve for a certain Blake.

“I’m just thinking.” She handed him the second last bowl from the sink.

“Thinking about the storm?” he prompted further, placing the bowl into the cabinet with the rest. Echo shifted from foot to foot.

_Sure. Let’s go with that._

“Mhmm.” She handed him the last spoon.

“It’ll be fine.” Bellamy took the utensil. “If the power  _does_ go out, you have your box of goodies that would protect us.”

Echo smirked at his teasing tone. “Don’t patronize me, Blake. I’m only here because you don’t even own a battery powered radio.  _You need me_.”

“You’re here because I need someone to test these cookies for me,” he corrected. “You just brought your winter storm stuff for fun.”

“ _When_ the power goes out, we’ll be covered,” she corrected. “Your cookies will be destroyed, we’ll happily listen to  _my_ battery powered radio, and we’ll be able to actually  _see_ each other because I also brought candles.”

“My cookies will be destroyed?” She scoffed at his reply.  _Of course,_ the thing he got out of her sentence was about his damn cookies. She loved him.

“Your oven is electrical. If the power goes out, they’re toast.”

If he really wanted to be, he could almost be as stubborn as she was at times. Clearly, he going to use this moment to be stubborn.  _Oh well_. At least she was prepared for the both of them.

She couldn’t deny that  _part_ of the reason she came over today was to make sure Bellamy was going to stay safe. She knew he wasn’t prepared for the winter storms, not really. He claimed that he had a pack of granola bars and a pack of water bottles stashed away if things got really bad – both at the insistence of Murphy, apparently – but she wasn’t too sure if that was classified as being prepared.

Well, it’s not like they really needed much while living in an apartment building in the middle of the city. It was a fairly large building that conserved heat, and the building was maintained well throughout the years, so no snow would be getting inside.

She blamed her preparedness on the fact the house she grew up in lost heat fast in the winter. She grew up  _needing_  to be prepared for these storms.

 _The other part of the reason she came over was because she wanted to see Bellamy_. Their conversations had become something she enjoyed daily.

Lo and behold, as Echo handed Bellamy the last plate in the sink, the lights flickered. They locked eyes. Bellamy’s lips were pursed as they continued to flicker, clearly not impressed by the turn of events. Echo waited with baited breath.

When the lights grew steady once again, relief filled her. This was one bet she would be happy to lose. If Bellamy’s optimism turned out to be right, she would be glad. Winter storms were something she would never wish for.

Bellamy sent her a wink as he finished drying the bowl. She shook her head fondly and uncorked the sink, letting the water drain from it.

Then, just as he was opening the cupboard to put the bowl away, the lights shut off completely. The hum of the television from the living room disappeared, and so did the blinking light of the oven.  _Everything_ shut off.

Through the darkness, she could see Bellamy’s lips form a silent  _oh._ She could barely see him otherwise. While it was only 6PM, winter meant early evenings and it had been nearing pitch black outside for hours.

While his kitchen would usually glow from the blue light on the oven showing the time, or even the little green numbers from the microwave, there was nothing now.  _No lights, no ovens, no glowing numbers._ Not even a window was present to let the light reflected off the moon stream in.

She didn’t know why darkness brought silence with it, but she felt herself holding her breath. Her motions stilled and she widened her eyes, trying to see more of her surroundings.

Bellamy must’ve stilled when the power went out too. She could faintly see his hand outstretched towards the cupboard, the bowl in hand. She could  _just_  see the outline of his body. His features were erased and she was saddened by that.  _She really loved his eyes_.

When the sink made a loud gargle once the water had reached the bottom of it, the spell that covered them broke. He moved the rest of the way, dropping the bowl into its place in the cupboard with a loud clank. Echo reached for the spot she remembered leaving the towel, pulling it towards herself to dry her hands.

“I left my phone in my bag,” Echo said, finally breaking the silence. Bellamy snorted.

“I left mine in my room. I wasn’t really expecting this.” At least he had the courtesy to sound sheepish.

“You don’t say?” She couldn’t keep the smile off of her face at that. She loved their light banter.

She reached forward slowly, reaching towards his hand. When her fingertips brushed against his wrist, Bellamy moved his arm so his hand was in hers. Their fingers wound together and she was thankful for the darkness hiding her blush.

“We need to unplug appliances,” she said, trying to push her surge of feelings down.  _This wasn’t the time._  “Let’s get our phones first? For the flashlights?”

“Good idea.” He took a step closer to her. “Yours is closest.”

With that, they began their journey to her phone. It was fairly successful, considering he only bashed his toe once and she walked into two walls.

She tried to ignore the fact that her heart was racing from the sheer fact his hand was in hers. She tried to pull her thoughts away from it, but all she could think about was how warm it was. Her heart was absolutely pounding when he accidently bumped into her when she slowed down, pressing their bodies closer together than usual. Of course, they’ve hugged before, but this caught her off-guard in the best way possible.

She was a mess for Bellamy.

They reached the living room without too many accidents and she grabbed her phone. When she turned on the flashlight, some of the magic the darkness held disappeared. She could see every inch of him again, which she was thankful for.  _She really did love his eyes_.

But, with them being able to see their surroundings clearly again, that meant there wasn’t a reason to hold hands anymore. She really shouldn’t have cared in that moment, but she did. All she really wanted to do was hold his hand for hours and curl into his side.

When their eyes locked, he never pulled his hand away. Instead, he tilted his head to the side, beckoning her to come with him.  _That_ made butterflies erupt in her stomach.

He moved across the apartment, her hand collapsed in his. Only when they entered his bedroom and grabbed his phone did he release his hold on her.

Her hand fell back to her side. She tried not to let him see the flush in her cheeks by quickly turning around and heading back to the kitchen. She could hear him following after her.

“What do you have plugged in?”

As it turned out, Bellamy didn’t have too many appliances. He unplugged the fridge and she unplugged the television and microwave, and they met to work on the oven together. As they pulled it out from the wall to get to the plugs, he muttered under his breath about his destroyed cookies. He pulled them out of the oven, a sour look on his face.

“They were going to be good,” he told her. Echo didn’t have trouble believing him. They looked  _really_  good. Plus, from experience, she knew he was a good baker. He set them down on the stovetop before turning to her. “I guess it’s a good thing you brought your winter kit, huh?” His smirk sent a jolt through her.

“I told you,” she pointed out, her voice teasing. “I’ll get the radio set up. We’ll need storm updates.”

“We can’t use our phones?” he asked.

Echo turned to him, her eyebrow raised. “I mean, we  _could,_ but we have no idea how long the power will be out. I was taught to only use my cell phone as a cell phone in a situation without power, in case we need to contact someone.” She glanced at her screen. “I’m already only at 73% so I’ll need to start saving power.”

He glanced at his screen. “I’m at 60%.” He flicked his flashlight off. “Good point though. Airplane mode conserves battery, by the way.”

She smiled at him and another set of butterflies filled her stomach. Him knowing things was really  _freaking_  attractive. “Good tip. Thanks.”

“Alright. You’ll do radio stuff, I’ll get the blankets?”

With that, they were moving to opposite ends of the house. Echo pulled open the flaps of the cardboard box she lugged up from her apartment and sifted through it. She pulled out the radio and a single candle. They needed to conserve their phone batteries, which meant no flashlight. Somehow, she doubted spending Valentine’s Day in the dark with nothing to do would be too enjoyable.

She could hear Bellamy rattling in the closet of his bedroom as she walked back into the living room and kneeled beside the coffee table.

As she set up the radio, her mind wondered to Bellamy. He looked stunning in the dark. Don’t get her wrong, he looked good all of the time, but there was something enchanting about him with barely any light shining on him. He looked like he was one of those Greek heroes he liked talking to her about so much. There was that right tone of mystery that came with the darkness, and he was as breathtaking as the heroes he described.

She could imagine his brown eyes then. Even though he was in the other room, she could almost see them in front of her. They were sparking from the flashlight; it was almost like little sparks had filled his eyes. She could see the flecks of rust and gold splattered amongst the brown. He had such unique eyes — eyes that she could stare into forever.

“I hope your winter kit has a blanket?” he asked, exiting his bedroom. Echo stopped fiddling with the knobs of the radio and turned to look at him. “That’s ancient. Where did you even buy that?”

She glanced at the radio. She would admit it was old — she got it when she was a kid — but it did its job perfectly and it never failed her before. What was the point of getting s new one if it still worked?

Before she could respond, he was speaking again. “I could only find one blanket. But I have a sweater I can wear.”

Echo was tempted to suggest they share one blanket. The words stuck in her throat.

“We should be okay for a while. I can always run down to my apartment and grab a blanket.”

Before he could notice that her face was flushed (gods, she was blushing from just  _imagining_  sitting close to him), she turned back to the radio.

For what felt like the hundredth time that night, she decided that she was a mess.

He dropped the blanket onto the couch a foot behind her and dropped to his knees beside her. She watched intently out of the corner of her eyes as he reached across the table for the lighter she brought and flicked the switch, letting a tiny flame come to life.

She watched as he brought the candle and the flame closer to his body. She admired the concentration in his eyes. She couldn’t pull her gaze away from how his lips pressed together as he focused, or how his forehead creased from concentration.

Her eyes dropped to his lips.  _She wondered what it would be like to kiss them_.

Echo jumped as the static from the radio abruptly shifted to a loud song. She ripped her gaze away from Bellamy and fumbled for the volume on the radio, her heart racing and hands shaking.

She tried to shake it off with a brief chuckle, but she knew he must’ve noticed she was distracted. With the light from the candle, she bet that he could see her blush too.

She turned the knob to the news station as slowly as she could, dreading having to turn and look at him completely. She could already imagine his cocky smirk. She’d seen that before, when he caught girls staring at him.

She couldn’t prolong it anymore. As soon as the raspy voices of the news broadcasters drifted from the radio, she set it down and clenched her teeth. As they continued to speak about the hockey game from the previous night, she turned to look at him.

Her breath caught in her throat. He looked bewitching under the candle light. Gods, she thought he never looked good with the shadows of the darkness across his face, but she was wrong. He’d never looked more captivating than in that moment.

His skin looked warm and glowing from the candle light. As the flame danced along the wick of the candle, the light danced along his face. She marveled at how gorgeous he looked, with half of his face warm with lighting that looked like honey, while the other was cool from the shadows of the room. She could see the path of freckles along his face, almost as if each one was placed there for a star in the sky.

And his eyes.  _Oh, gods, his eyes_. They sparkled with something much warmer than the electricity she seen earlier. She could see the tiny flame reflected in him, reminding her of the warmth he held in his soul. His eyes weren’t just brown in that moment either, nor were they brown with rust and gold flecks; they were a kaleidoscope of colours. She’d never seen them look so alive and so captivating before. She couldn’t look away even if she wanted to.

“I-” Bellamy looked away first, his lips pressed tightly together. He let out a breathless laugh. “I’m wishing I would’ve believed you about the storm,” he said, his voice light.

Echo forced out a laugh. She hoped she didn’t sound as forced as she felt. “I did warn you.”

Her heart was racing and her palms were sweating. Bellamy Blake was the only person in the world to make her feel like she was falling and flying at the same time.

Without looking at him again, she climbed off the floor and moved to the couch. She made herself busy by pulling the blanket onto her lap, her eyes locked on the pattern. She tried to calm her racing heart and push away the feelings bubbling in her chest.

She knew she shouldn’t like him.  _He was her friend_. They were  _just_  friends. Gods, the last time she tried dating a friend, it was as close to a disaster as she could’ve got. Part of her mind told her that was just Roan and their breakup and fallout of friendship was inevitable. That same part of her told her that Bellamy was nothing like Roan, that she shouldn’t be scared to give anything a try with him.  _She tried to ignore that part_. She knew that as soon as she started considering it, she would just fall harder and harder for him.

Plus, was he even interested? She felt like she understood him so well – except for this. She couldn’t get a proper read on him or how he felt towards her. Was he flirting or was that just how he acted? Was he into her or was he just being friendly?

She was broken from her thoughts as he sat on the couch beside her, his head moving back to rest on the cushion. She was relieved when the voices radio died down and the tune for breaking news played. At least she would have a good distraction.

She listened to the weather report, her mind everywhere but. All she could think about was how close she was to Bellamy and how good he looked. She knew it really shouldn’t have been, but the candlelight made her heart race. After all, it was romantic, wasn’t it?

Echo managed to catch most of what the reporter was saying. The winter storm brought high winds and a lot of snow, knocking out the power in several blocks of the eastern side of the city, including the street their apartment was on. Her eyes widened when she heard that power would be restored within the next few hours.

Those final few words managed to capture her full attention. “Good.” Echo leaned back in the couch, once again feeling relieved. They didn’t have enough supplies to last for days without power. A few hours weren’t going to be too bad.

They had heat in the apartment and blankets if things got out of hand. All appliances were unplugged in case of a power surge. Their phones were off to save battery. The radio was clear. The candle was burning bright.

 _Things were good_. It wasn’t like she thought things were going to go badly before she heard the weather report, but knowing this would only last a few hours calmed worries she didn’t even know she had.

She turned to Bellamy. Surprisingly, he was already looking at her, an unreadable expression on his face. She cocked an eyebrow. “What’s up?”

His eyes flicked away from her face, moving to the radio on the coffee table. She recognized his expression then; he looked coy.

“I’m just thinking about what we’re going to do for the next few hours,” he replied. “No television, no cell phones, no Internet.” They locked eyes again. “I guess this means we actually have to…  _talk._ ” He wrinkled his nose in mock horror.

Echo tossed a pillow from behind her back at him and rolled her eyes. “You’re hilarious,” she said dryly. He snorted and tossed the pillow back at her. Considering all they did for the first few months of their friendship was talk as they waited for their laundry, she could safely say this wouldn’t be a problem. “You could tell me about the myth you’re analyzing for class?”

“I could.” He reached past her and brought the radio to his lap. She didn’t question what he was doing – she knew he would most likely not give her a straightforward answer. Instead, she just watched amusedly. “Is it okay if I change the station?”

Echo was confused, but she shrugged anyways. It would be easy to get back to the channel they were on – she had the station number memorized. “Sure.”

Without further prompting, Bellamy began twisting the knob. As he began scrolling through the channels, he spoke, “I heard something on the radio when I was driving to work earlier.” He briefly looked up at her. “They were talking about a radio station for Valentine’s Day.” Echo didn’t dare speak at this; she didn’t want to say the wrong thing. Instead, she chewed on her lip and watched him work. “I was thinking it would be nicer to listen to than traffic reports?”

“Uhm. Sure.” She knew that if the weather changed suddenly, they would broadcast a warning over all radio stations anyways. What really  _was_ the point of staying on that station?

Bellamy brought the radio closer to his face and narrowed his eyes as he scrolled through the stations. Finally, his fingers slowed and he pulled away from the radio. As soon as he settled on the right station, a slow-paced song came through the speakers.

He set the radio back down on the coffee table and leaned back into the couch. Echo tried not to look in his direction – once again fearing he could see her blushing – but she noticed out of the corner of her eye that he was stiff.

She turned her head slightly towards him, her eyes dragging slowly from the candle to his face. Once again, he was staring at her. She smiled at him. When he returned that smile, she felt something bubble inside of her.

“Did you want to dance?” he asked, breaking the silence that settled over them. She could see the muscles in his jaw ripple as he bit down. Was he nervous? “I mean… Well, we have nothing else to do. Well, yeah, we could talk, but we could be here for hours and-”

“Yes.” Her voice was determined as she spoke. She was happy to stop his worries before they tumbled from his lips. He didn’t need to worry about her turning down his request.  _Gods,_ she wanted to dance with him.

She was the one to stand up from the couch first, her hand outstretched towards him. He grinned as he took it. It was a cheesy little grin too – one that she hadn’t seen before. It made her heart flip.

They took a few steps away from the couch and the coffee table, standing in the wide open space just in front of the television.

Even though her heart was as light as the air around them, she knew this dance didn’t mean the same thing to him as it meant to her. To him, it was a way to pass the time.

Knowing it was just a dance between friends, she tried to keep it light. In a way, joking around was a way to protect herself. After all, if he didn’t know how much she wanted this to be them –  _just them_ – then she wouldn’t get hurt.  _Right?_

So, she bowed for him, her expression one of upmost seriousness. He could see right through her act and let out a loud laugh, throwing his head back from the force of it. Seeing him in so much joy swept that same emotion through her and she found herself joining in on the laughter.

Before she could clutch her sides, he was reaching towards her. Her laughter immediately got stuck in her throat as his fingers wove with hers. His laughter slowly petered out by the time he took a single step towards her, closing the space between them.

Echo could hear her blood rushing through her ears. She would’ve bet that he could hear it too. She sucked in a quick breath between her teeth, trying to force her nervousness and excitement away.  _They were just friends._

Their one hand stayed collapsed together. Her other arm moved to wrap around her shoulders, her hand dangling inches away from the nape of his neck. She imagined that if she was bolder, her hands would be able to thread through his hair.  _Gods,_ he had such beautiful hair.

His arm wrapped around her waist and she tightened her jaw the tiniest bit. While they still had plenty of room between the two of their bodies, she felt like she was melting. When Bellamy started moving alongside the music, she could’ve sworn that fact was true.

She took a step closer to him to steady herself as he moved. Giving herself a small shake, she began to move too.

Her whole life, Echo was  _always_ the one to set aside her nervousness or be able to bury her feelings. Public speaking? She would be able to go on stage in front of hundreds of people and not shake. Cliff diving? She did that without batting an eye. That was one thing people knew about her; if she didn’t want to looked phased by something,  _she didn’t_. If she wanted to look emotionless,  _she could manage that_.

But with Bellamy? All of that left.  _None_ of that applied anymore. She couldn’t hide her smiles or stop the laughs from bubbling out of her. She couldn’t prevent herself from shaking as he pulled her close, and she couldn’t hide the blush that coloured her cheeks.

Bellamy Blake made everything she  _thought_ she knew go out the window. He made her fall apart in the best ways possible. He made her feel alive.

And in that moment, she couldn’t look away from him. His goofy smile had slowly disappeared as the song progressed, being replaced by that same expression from earlier – the one she couldn’t identify.

She knew she was seeing things, because she could’ve sworn his eyes kept drifting to her lips. She could’ve sworn that his eyes were filled with tenderness and adoration. She could’ve sworn that expression meant something more than just friends.

But that was what she wanted.  _She wanted that._ She knew it couldn’t be true. It was just her eyes playing tricks on her. It was her mind imagining something that wasn’t really there.

Regardless of if he was glancing at her lips, he was breathtaking in that moment. With the candle to her back, she could see a miniscule amount of the flame reflected in his eyes. Most of the light was blocked by the back of her head, but whatever  _did_ reach him made him look like he was glowing.

Without thinking twice, her hand drifted from its spot dangling over his shoulder and moved to the back of his head. His hair was softer than what she expected. She let a single tendril curl around her finger and she smiled, her heart giving a lurch.

His hand tightened on her waist and he took a single step towards her. Mere inches now separated them, instead of feet. If she leaned forward, their bodies would be flush together. The idea of that made her mouth run dry.

“You won the bet,” Bellamy said, his voice lower than before. Not only was it nearly a whisper, but there was a certain quality to it that made her heart jump.

“What bet?” Her voice matched his. It seemed neither of them wanted to break the blanket of silence draped over them.

Echo had to admit – talking in anything above a whisper seemed like it should be a crime in that moment. Dancing with him in the darkness, the radio a hum in the background, her heart so calm, and her mind so silent – it was too perfect of a moment to interrupt by speaking.

“Earlier,” he said, his eyes drifting back down to her lips. Out of habit, her tongue darted out to wet them. “You bet me that the power would go out. I disagreed.” They locked eyes. “We made a bet on it.”

“Right.” Her voice sounded breathless to her. Her eyes drooped to his lips.  _His perfect lips._ They were parted ever-so-slightly. Every breath he took washed over her face and  _gods_ was it ever tantalizing. “What was the prize again?” For the life of her, she couldn’t remember in that moment.

She didn’t realize it, but they had stopped dancing at this point. They simply stood in the middle of the room, wrapped in each other’s arms, the soft music from the Valentine’s Day station playing from the radio.

When she met his gaze, he licked his lips again. Her heart was racing in her chest. Her breathing was starting to get more and more rapid.

“Can I kiss you?” he asked, his lips barely moving with the question.

Echo’s heart completely stopped from his words. Her eyes snapped up to meet his, a jolt of electricity running through her.

She knew her voice would fail her in that moment. Instead of speaking, she managed a nod.

 _Then his lips were on hers._ Their bodies were flush together and his arm wound around her back, pulling her to his chest. Their collapsed hands simply fell to their sides; their minds suddenly too occupied to even think about releasing that hold on each other.

While the kiss was short, she determined one thing; she wanted to do that  _over and over._ His lips were soft, yet so sure in their movements. His touches held so much adoration in them that it could make her fall to pieces.

As their kiss ended, they couldn’t pull away from each other. Echo tipped her head forward slightly, coming to rest against Bellamy’s. His thumb swept along the back of her hand. It was such a simple gesture, but it made her heart melt.

She let out a breathless laugh before she opened her eyes. “That was my prize?” she asked, her voice teasing. Bellamy shook his head, a wide smile on his face.

“You’re cute,” he commented. The words sent a wave of affection through her. “I mean, it could be. I was thinking more along the lines of a pizza dinner and a movie as your prize, but this means less money spent.”

Echo knew he was joking, so she let out a loud laugh at that, falling completely into him. Both of her arms wrapped around his back, just as he did with her. 

“You’re a mess,” she commented, her voice filled with affection. The palm of Bellamy’s hand rested against the middle of her back.

“I am. But you love me for it.”

Her smile softened at that. “You’re right. I love you.”

His arms tightened around her shoulders. She could feel his head move a fraction of an inch closer to hers. “I love you, too. Happy Valentine’s Day.”

**Author's Note:**

> I just wanted to say that this fic takes a fluffy approach to the whole winter storm and power outage thing, but those are two things that aren’t to be messed with. If you’re in this situation, make sure to take proper precautions. I tried to put in what I usually do during a power outage from a storm, but I’m not extremely knowledgeable and I encourage you to look up tips for yourself! To those of you experiencing a cold season right now, stay safe and stay warm!! 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this fic. It turned out way longer than anticipated, but I’m not complaining. It was a lot of fun to write.
> 
> I hope everyone is having a lovely Valentine’s Day!
> 
> Paw  
> [Find me on Tumblr!](https://pawprinterfanfic.tumblr.com/)
> 
> EDIT: you can find the moodboard for this fic [here!](https://pawprinterfanfic.tumblr.com/post/182798258692/dancing-in-the-dark-a-becho-modern-au-rated-t)  
> 


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